Cleaning the Polo TDI's Engine Bay

[mr_walker]

My newly acquired Polo TDI has a heap of dirt and crud in the engine bay because the previous owner must have had a gravel driveway or done some km's on dirt roads.

I know the TDI is probably less sensitive to water than a petrol engine, so should I just go over it with the pressure sprayer at the local DIY car wash, or am I likely to short something out?

If I warm it up properly first, it will probably dry out pretty quickly I'm thinking. What's the general opinion?

(edit) And I just figured out that it's missing the battery cover - I thought it was strange that the terminals were exposed like that.

[Stuwey]

DO NOT use the pressure washer

My local VW dealer had 5 breakdowns on Monday, three of which were cars that got drowned at the mercy of a car wash!

Degreser in a can, get the $2 specials from supercrap. Two of 'em. Use the first one.Leave it for a minute, then go again with the second one if anything has stayed behind.

LOW pressure hose would be fine to get the degreaser off. Obviously, keep it to a minumum around wiring connectors.

[Bubu]

DO NOT use the pressure washer

My local VW dealer had 5 breakdowns on Monday, three of which were cars that got drowned at the mercy of a car wash!

Degreser in a can, get the $2 specials from supercrap. Two of 'em. Use the first one.Leave it for a minute, then go again with the second one if anything has stayed behind.

LOW pressure hose would be fine to get the degreaser off. Obviously, keep it to a minumum around wiring connectors.

X2!

Thats about what I do. In my old car (a non-VW) I used to cover the electricals (distributor, fuse/distribution box and battery) with plastic shopping bags, to prevent water getting in. If I didnt the car would idle funny for about a day.

[GoLfMan]

bah i used the local DIY car wash degreser on the engine bay then gently rinsed it off.... nothing wrong with it if your careful!

[Ben_GTI]

Your home use little high pressure unit is okay to use, they diffuse after about 0.5m and become more of a misting device in my experience.

One again its just common sense with hoses. I prefer to use the karcher because if I stand back nothing actually gets hit with a jet of water it just mists down and dribbles off taking the degreaser with it.


I'd talk to VW about your battery cover... sounds dodgy.

[mr_walker]

Thanks guys - I might just ask the dealer to do it when it's in for some warranty work in the next week or two

I was going to bag up the distributor, but I've had a hard time finding it on the TDI ...

Yeah - I think the previous owner somehow managed to lose the battery cover, or didn't notice it wasn't there after the last service